In an age when manufactured goods are king, it seems improbable that handmade goods could find value. That’s just it though. They have value because they have meaning. Handmade gifts are making a huge comeback. When you make something and put your heart and spirit into it, that item has more value than anything from a department store. This year for Christmas, see what all the fuss is about. This book takes you on an easy step-by-step journey through crocheting some things to make your holidays just a little more cozy. From the simple, to the complex, this book really covers it all. For those that have never picked up a hook before, there are easy to follow directions on how to get started and what the basic skills you will need are. For those that can spin out a blanket in a matter of hours, there’s something for you too! The projects are paired with pictures, showing you just a quick idea of what you can do with your project. There’s so much out there! Each pattern also comes with directions on how much yarn you will need, the hook type, and helpful hints. Christmas is right around the corner. Start a new tradition this year with some handmade decorations that will be treasured for years. You’ll be surprised at how easy they really are to put together. Comments From Other Readers “I don’t normally have the patience to sit and just work on a craft. Then I broke my leg. Needless to say there wasn’t too much I could do but sit for long periods of time. You can only have so many Netflix marathons. A friend of mine from work suggested taking up crocheting. I figured with this book I might be able to throw something together for the holidays and if not, I’d at least keep my mind off my leg. It was a success on both parts! I started out with a runner and worked my way up to a wreath. I know this is something I’ll continue long after I’m up and walking!” - Amy (Minnesota, US) “I loved making little gifts for my kid’s teachers and even as stocking stuffers. The Elf was adorable and the cape will get a lot of use as the days get colder. I’m so glad I grabbed this book!” - Kelli (North Carolina, US) Tags: homemade holiday, yarn, crochet, beginners crochet, Christmas, holiday, winter, knit, Crocheting, Crochet, Afghan, knitting, one day crocheting, Christmas projects, Crochet Projects, Christmas Gifts, DIY Christmas

    Will Sophie really be able to get what she needs by spending the holidays alone? Will Miss Eugenia be able to give a struggling family the Christmas they want? Has five-year-old Janie's visit from Santa really been cancelled because she was bad? Take a journey into the minds and hearts of three engaging characters who each need to believe in their version of Christmas-and discover that believing in people is what the spirit of Christmas is all about. A perfect assortment for sharing and celebrating the holiday season.

    Warring nations came together to honour tradition and celebrate their shared humanity, proclaiming an unofficial ceasefire as they swapped food, sung carols, and even played football matches against one another. It is one of those very rare moments during the bloody twentieth century which provide a glimmer of light. It is in some ways the great overlooked moment of the past century – moving, hopeful and filled with possibility. But how was it viewed at the time? And why did it never successfully happen again? What risks did the men in the trenches run, how did it come about, and did it change their view of the enemy? The Christmas Truce has become a symbol of hope for human beings working together in desperate situations. But historians have argued ever since about its significance, ranging from those who believe it was an irrelevance to those for whom it was a moment of enormous significance – and part of that argument is the question of when - and why - the truce officially ended. This book is designed to tell the story of the truce to a wider audience, as a compelling narrative, stitching together first-hand accounts of the soldiers who lived through it. A hundred years on, it is still a moment that resonates with audiences around the world.

     Select from 12 strikingly simple quilts and recharge your creative batteries Discover skill-building projects that move from squares and strips to designs featuring stitch-and-flip corners, half-square triangles, pinwheels, a Rail Fence layout, and more Enjoy patterns that are just right for quilt retreats and make-in-a weekend gifts

    Death takes no prisoners, yet ironically, it liberates the captive Saints from persecution. Flying banners of freedom, a new American society emerges based on the original Constitution of the United States. A different, fiercely righteous people descend from the north and join with the Saints as they re-establish a republic. The lost tribes bring with them miracles, gifts, and deadly defenses to protect their tent cities from rogue land pirates that infest the nation. For the Rogers family, the tribes return is especially joyful as Braun and Carea finally come home! In Jerusalem, Elder Conrad Rogers and the two apostles he serves face hostile Jews. The apostles have caused many Jews to question the ancient holy traditions as they send sore plagues upon the nation. Secretly, a Judas is sent among the apostles and their missionary associate, Elder Rogers. It s his job to bring them to destruction. It s only a matter of time before someone dies.... Among the righteous in every corner of the world, there are whisperings among the faithful. They see the signs and know it is the midnight hour. He is coming!

    

    He hopes they are dark enough to hide him from the unforgiving neighbors in the small town of his youth. When he drove away years ago, no one understood how he could leave behind his wife, Allyson, and their small son, Alma. After years on a road leading nowhere, Porter has finally started to get his life on track. Hes active in the Church and his business is successful. However, his relationship with his son has deteriorated to annual birthday cards and even less frequent visits. Then came the phone call. Allyson is dead. Now Porter is back in Utah to reclaim his son. However, Alma will leave the only life hes known under one not-so-simple conditionhis broken-down truck must come too. Even if Porter has to push it the entire five hundred miles to Eager, Arizona. Join acclaimed storyteller Alma Yates on a heartwarming journey of faith, redemption, and forgiveness as this father and son come to learn that their relationship, like the old truck, is worth fixing.

    A little girl name Rosie is creating miracles in the lives of its residents using the wondrous power of love. Because of Rosie, Cleston, a wood craftsman, finds his gift rekindled; Helen, an Alzheimer's patient, instictively trusts the little girl; Jake, the war veteran, begins to feel whole again; Ina, who, though blind, helps people see the beauty all around; and, most importantly, Bessie.Rosie and Bessie become inseparable best friends. Through Bessie, Rosie learns some invaluable life lessons, including Home is a place where you're surrounded by love. Just before Christmas, when the woman who had taught her so much about living speaks of dying, Rosie learns what true love and beauty and friendship really mean.

    Alison decides--after the final straw has fallen on the camel's back of her eternal maternal devotion--to run away from home for Mother's Day weekend. Her plan is perfect until disaster strikes, tables turn, and she becomes the only one who can save the day. If you--or anyone you know--has ever felt like a second-rate mother, Alison's story will let you breathe easier, laugh louder, and love a little longer.

    The photo looks completely out of place on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list where it’s been since December, 8, 2007. For eight of those years, Jason appeared directly beside Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden is long gone, but Jason is still wanted for armed robbery and murder.For years, his sister, Jami D. Brown Martin has watched the true crime programs and read the amateur investigative blogs devoted to Jason, his crime, and the efforts to apprehend him knowing the story wasn’t as simple, nor was it just Jason’s. To be the sister, brother, or relative of one of the world’s most wanted men is to live every day with the horrible truth and many consequences of his brutal act.CENTER OF ATTENTION is the story of a former Mormon missionary turned murderer. It is also a riveting look behind the facade of the genetically blessed, seemingly prominent and pious Brown family of Laguna Beach, California. It is a tale of the family patriarch, John Brown, who disappeared without a trace ten years before his son. More important, it is the gripping and ultimately hopeful story of the sister of one of the world’s most wanted fugitives and her journey to accept that despite being a product of the same crazy environment as her brother, her life and path are her own.

    Think back to when you were a kid and someone you loved gave you a little wink across the dining room table, like Mom or Dad or Grandma. You didn't say, “What do you mean by that?” You knew. It meant: “Hey kid, I'm thinking about you right now.” That's what a Godwink is: a message of reassurance from above, directly to you, out of seven billion people on the planet, saying “Hey kid...I’m thinking of you! Keep the faith! You’re never alone.” Some people call them coincidences. They could look like an answered prayer, a reunion with a loved one, a miraculous provision, or an unexpected blessing. But no matter what, Godwinks let us know God is thinking about us, that He loves us, and that He’s looking out for us. Now, just in time for the holiday season, comes Godwinks Christmas Stories, a collection of stories centered around Christmas that demonstrate how these little coincidences aren’t coincidences after all. These true stories will uplift and encourage you—and remind you that there is still goodness, hope, and faith all around us.

    With a degree and a dream, she's heading to New York City to start a new job and a new life. She can't wait to experience Rockefeller Center and to take a thousand pictures of her first Christmas in the city.But before she's even on the ground, she loses the job and learns her parents are divorcing.Can Aubrey find her way in an unforgiving city? Can she find love, or at the very least, a real friend? Most importantly, with her first holiday in New York fast approaching, can she create the kind of Christmas she always pictured?

    She is ready for a new life of challenges and adventure, but she does not expect to arrive at the station to meet an unexpected baby and homeless husband-to-be. Calvin Green is a good man, but he has been dealt some unfortunate blows. An electrical storm has claimed his home, his job, and and the parents of the infant, and he has taken charge of the young boy. Now, Celia and Calvin have set out from Montana on the trail to the Oregon territories, to forge a life together. And as they tackle the challenges of the journey together, they find the strength in each other and in the spirit of love. Until they finally reach their destination and face their biggest challenge yet—with the help of a little Christmas spirit.

    But now Jen's life seems to be crumbling around her. Her husband Adam is suddenly without a job, her sister is moving far away, and people increasingly describe her two-year-old daughter as a difficult child. This is not the way Jen dreamed parenthood would be, especially with her youngest daughter.In the middle of each night, Kaye wakes up screaming. Human interactions and parental guidance have little meaning for her. Jen makes jokes about Kaye's public behavior to push away the pain. Marie, her four-year-old daughter, wants to know, "Why won't Kaye play with me?" Then Jen's new visiting teacher asks if Kaye is autistic. In Faraway Child, Amy Maida Wadsworth shares her most personal novel to date with a story about a family who faces shattered expectations, and then learns to reach out to family, ward members, and to God.